Instant Pot Turkey Chili

Instant Pot Turkey Chili is a protein packed, healthy chili. This cooks quickly in the pressure cooker and is great for game day or family meals. It also freezes nicely for later!

INSTANT POT TURKEY CHILI

During the winter months we eat a lot of chili in my house. It is such an easy thing to throw together for meals and game day and also makes great leftovers. I also really like that chili is healthy, loaded with a good does of protein from the meat and beans and leaves you feeling full. Today’s Instant Pot Turkey Chili takes your favorite stove top or slow cooker chili and makes it in the pressure cooker.

One thing I love about the pressure cooker is that it keeps everything in one pot and you can have a meal on the table in under 30 to 40 minutes with almost no work. When it comes to soups and chilis the Instant Pot makes it super easy.

HOW DO YOU MAKE CHILI IN THE INSTANT POT?

A couple of months ago I shared a recipe for Easy Instant Pot Beef Chili, which my family loved. I feel like I perfected that chili recipe in the pressure cooker which made this recipe easy to make following those instructions.

You will start by using the sauté function on your pressure cooker. Turn it to the high setting and let it heat up. Once it is heated add the olive oil. Once the pressure cooker heats the oil add turkey and let it sit for a few minutes and brown on the bottom. From there you will break the meat apart and continue to sauté until the meat is browned. Drain the meat of any fat and set the meat aside.

Put 1 additional Tablespoon of olive oil in the pressure cooker and add the garlic and onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the bell pepper and jalapeño and all of the spices and continue to sauté until the bell pepper is tender. Put the ground turkey back in and 1/2 a cup of the broth.

Use your spoon to deglaze the Instant Pot, making sure to scrape away all of the browned bits of food. This helps to ensure that your food doesn’t burn during the pressure cooking phase.

Add the broth, beans, and the tomatoes and seal the lid. Make sure not to stir as you want the tomatoes and beans on the top. Close lid and pressure cook on Manual at High Pressure for 5 minutes, followed by quick release when time is up.

Carefully open the lid and give it a stir.

If you want it to thicken up more you can put the lid back on and let it sit for a couple of minutes. You can also use 1 Tablespoons cornstarch and 1 Tablespoons water and mix those two together and then add it to the chili to thicken.

WHAT ELSE CAN I ADD TO TURKEY CHILI?

I love modifying recipes based on what is in my fridge and pantry. Here are some ideas to mix up your chili:

Add a variety of beans. Some of my favorites in chili are white beans, chickpeas or navy beans.

If you have a can of hominy in the pantry throw that in. We love the texture it adds to chili.

For the spicy chili lovers, chop up a jalapeño and throw that in. You can also add hot sauce and extra cayenne pepper.

If you love the flavor of poblanos you can easily add a chopped poblano when you are cooking your bell pepper and onion.

Yield: 8-10

Instant Pot Turkey Chili

Instant Pot Turkey Chili is a protein packed, healthy chili. This cooks quickly in the pressure cooker and is great for game day or family meals. It also freezes nicely for later!

Prep Time10 minutes

Cook Time40 minutes

Total Time50 minutes

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 to 1 1/2 pounds ground turkey

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup diced sweet onion

1 large red pepper bell pepper, seeds removed, chopped

1 jalapeño, seeds removed, chopped {optional for spice}

3 Tablespoons chili powder

1 1/2 teaspoons cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon cayenne red pepper {optional for spice}

1- 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 – 15oz cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

2 – 15oz cans of diced tomatoes

2 cups chicken broth

1 – 15 oz can of corn, drained and rinsed

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Set a pressure cooker or Instant Pot to the normal sauté setting. Let it heat before adding the olive oil. Once heated add 2 Tablespoons olive oil and let the oil heat for about 20 seconds making sure the oil is covering the whole bottom of the Instant Pot.

Add the ground turkey to the Instant Pot along with a dash of salt and pepper and cook for about 2 minutes not stirring it {you want to create a layer of browning on the meat}. Use a large wooden spoon to break apart the turkey and continue to sauté until the turkey is browned, about 4-5 minutes.

Drain the fat from the ground turkey and set aside in a bowl {there won't be much fat with the turkey since it is pretty lean}. Add the remaining 1 Tablespoons olive oil to the Insta Pot on the sauté mode still. Add the garlic and onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the bell pepper, jalapeño, chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, cayenne pepper and continue to sauté until the bell pepper is tender, about 2 to 3 minutes and the spices start to release their fragrance.

Add 1/2 of a cup of chicken broth. Use your spoon to deglaze the pan by scraping away all of the browned bits of food.

Add the ground turkey, beans, remaining broth, diced tomatoes and corn in that order {DO NOT MIX} and seal the pot. Cancel the sauté function.

Close lid and pressure cook on Manual at High Pressure for 5 minutes, followed by quick release when time is up. Open the lid carefully.

Looks delish! One question, though, since the narrative and the step-by-step instructions say two different things: should I cook for 5 minutes on High, then quick release, or 10 minutes on High and then natural release?

Meet Julia

I'm Julia. Wife, mom to three growing boys, lover of food. Here you will find quick & easy weeknight meal ideas, kid-friendly recipes and a few sweet treats. My roots are from the Mediterranean and many of my recipes incorporate those flavors!

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I'm Julia. Wife, mom to three growing boys, lover of food. Here you will find quick & easy weeknight meal ideas, kid-friendly recipes and a few sweet treats. My roots are from the Mediterranean and many of my recipes incorporate those flavors! Read More…